Ogun police nab 2 for diverting truck carrying N11.5 m goods

By Daud Olatunji
ABEOKUTA — The Ogun State Police Command, yesterday, said it had arrested two who stole a truck loaded with goods worth N11.5 million.

The Police Public Relations Officer in the state, Muyiwa Adejobi, who addressed newsmen in Abeokuta, said men of the Special Anti-Robbery Squad, SARS, in the state made the arrest and the recovery.

Adejobi said: “The truck with number plate LAGOS LND 182 XB loaded with Nestle Plc products worth N11.5 million was recovered at Ijoga Orile, Ogun State from two suspects who actually stole and diverted the goods meant for a customer in Abuja, FCT, towards the area in Ogun State.”

“The suspects had loaded the truck with the goods meant for a customer in Abuja before the duo planned to divert it to another place for sale.

When the police detectives heard of the plan due to our intelligence gathering, they quickly keyed into the arrangement and a detective from SARS Ogun state entered into negotiation with the suspects, through the help of an informant.

“The suspects agreed to sell the goods for three million naira only to the potential buyer (the police man)before they were eventually arrested at Ijoga Orile.

“The suspects are Idowu Jimoh, 42, of Kokale Coca Cola Area of Otta, Ogun state, the driver of the truck who hails from Epe in Lagos state and Emeka Godwin, 21, of same address, the motor boy who hails from Anocha Local Government Area of Anambra state.

“The driver of the truck, Idowu, had worked in a company in Otta before he was sacked for similar offense of stealing and diverting a truck loaded with some chemical products.

“ He is married with two children, and has built a house from the proceeds of these dirty businesses he does. He had tactically removed the tracker fixed on the truck before he even left the company for Abuja as scheduled so that the company would not be able to track the movement of the truck.

“The Commissioner of Police Ogun State CP Ikemefuna Okoye has directed the Officer In Charge SARS Ogun to carry out a thorough investigation of the matter to get others connected with the crime before the matter is charged to court.

“The Commissioner has also advised companies to always screen those they employ to avert cases like this; and make sure they install sophisticated trackers on their vehicles unlike the type fixed on this truck in question that was removed by the driver before he even embarked on the trip to Abuja from the company in Otta.”